Fate Can Be Cruel
by Princess Sere14
Summary: Serena Tskunio has everything, a wonderful boyfriend and a job she looks forward to everyday. What if fate were to take that all away and give her a partner that makes her life a living hell? Fate Can Be Cruel. R
1. Default Chapter

Fate Can Be Cruel  
  
AN: Hi everybody. The sequel for Angel that I mentioned will have to wait a while because I have a ton of other things to do. I will be working on new chapters for Between Love and Hate and Be Mine tho.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own sailor moon or the others.  
  
It's cruel how fate can give you something and then take it away in an instant. I had a wonderful life with a fantastic boyfriend and a job that I looked forward to every day. Unlike most people who dread being within a fifty foor radius of their boss for fear of being fired on the spot, I get along great with my boss and all of my co-workers. Little did I know that was all about to be taken away from me...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Come on move it!" I scream at the blood red porche in front of me. I honked my horn a few times for effect. "I'm going to be late." I groan as the porche in front of me still doesn't move. 'The light is green so why doesn't that moron go!' I fume.  
  
In case you haven't guessed already, I'm not in the best mood right now. My long time boyfriend Jordan Light broke up with me this morning. I thought everything was going fine but noooooo.... Jordan called me up this morning and told me that it just wasn't working. Instead of being upset like I should have been I was (and still am) angry at him. I guess I kind of knew it had be coming, we had drifted apart lately, BUT OF ALL THE NERVE THE MAN BROKE UP WITH ME OVER THE PHONE! The phone for Pete's sake! What kind of self-respecting man does that?!  
  
At that thought I slam my hand down on the horn blasting it until the driver of the porche finally gets the clue and moves. 'About time!'  
  
Normally I don't worry about being ontime for work but my boss insisted that that I'd be there in time to meet the TV stations new worker AKA my new partner. 'Hmmm...I wonder what my new partner will be like?' I contemplate. 'Hopefully he or she is not some old stuck up bore that makes it impossible for anyone to get along with them because I have to work with them.  
  
In case your wondering who "I" am and what kind of work I do let me explain. I am Serena Tskunio and am twenty-two years old. I work at a TV station where I am the leading anchorer for the news. My old partner recently got married and transfered to another station in Arizona so I'm expecting a new partner today.  
  
What do I look like? I'm pretty (I'm not being conceited that's just what I'm always told). I have long blond hair that stops at my waist, baby blue eyes, and usually a bubly personality to go along with it but not right now. Anyway...  
  
Eventually my black mustang found its way into the station's parking lot, still trailing behind the porche. I watch as the owner of the porche parks the veichle and out steps the most gorgeous man I have *ever* seen. With a mop of ebony hair that dips over his stormy blue eyes intact with a well chiseled features and a body to die for. The good-looking man looks over my way and gives me a wry look. 'Who is he?' I wonder as I pull my car into an empty space next to him. Catching a glimpse of the clock I gasp. 'Who ever he is he made me late!'  
  
I hop out of my car and snatch my purse from the seat, hastily slamming the car door behind me. I break into a run and reach the meeting panting heavily. Luckily the meeting hasn't started yet. Spotting an empty chair I plop into it trying to catch my breath.  
  
At the head of the table a stout older man stands up. *Ahem* He clears his throat a few times. The chattering around me falls silent as he begins to speak.  
  
"The purpose for this meeting is to introduce to you a new worker. I have heard very good things about this young man and I expect for you all to show him the ropes around here if he needs it. Darien Shields will be our new anchorer working most closely with Serena. With out further delay...Darien Shields." The stout man steps aside to reveal the same ebony man I saw a few minutes ago.  
  
My heart soars as I realize that I will be working closely with this hottie then it plumets as I also realize that he's probably not to pleased with me at the moment for yelling and honking at him this morning. 'Fate is so cruel.' I think dejectedly. If I had only known I'd be working with him I wouldn't have...no I still would have honked and yelled at him I just wouldn't do it as much as I did.  
  
I feel myself sinking in my chair as my boss goes on. " You will be working with our top anchorer Serena Tskunio very closely..." He continues on but I tune him. I just hope he doesn't point me out right now, I don't like to be on anyone's bad side. I know sooner or later he will know who I am. I just hope it's later. 'Don't poin't at me. Don't point at me! Don't point at me!' My thoughts become more frantic as he looks in my direction.  
  
"So which one is she?" I hear Darien ask with a grin.  
  
"Her." My boss says pointing at me. Darien looks at me and his eyes widen.  
  
'Awww man........'  
  
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Let me know what you think!  
  
Ja~ 


	2. So we meet

AN: I know. I know another short chapter but I promise to try and make the next chapter a lot longer.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own sailor moon and the others. :(  
  
Fate Can Be Cruel  
  
'Awww man...'  
  
Our boss looks back and forth between the looks on Darien's and my face.' I'm pretty sure he figured out that we had met previously but thank goodness he didn't say anything or ask how we met. Instead he said, "Meeting dismissed." As everyone gathered their belongings and left, I sat rooted in my chair.  
  
I bit my lip nervously expecting him to say something or yell at me but he said nothing. I began tapping my French manicured nails impatiently as Darien gaped. 'Ok he was expecting me and I sure was expecting him but how long is he going to gape at me like that?!'  
  
Finally sensing my annoyance of being stared at he shut his mouth with a snap. "You!" he said as apparently everything registered to him.  
  
'Duh!' I thought mentally rolling my eyes. 'I felt like saying "someone give the man a prize he finally figured it out!" but I luckily I kept my mouth shut because a fantastic idea came to me. Inwardly I smiled as I figured how to get out of this situation and onto his good side. I HATE being on anyone's bad side and since he is going to be my new partner I rather him not be angry at me. "Yes me." I said smiling innocently. I lifted myself gently and sauntered over to him. "Let's talk." I said grabbing his hand and leading him to my dressing room. I opened the door and lead him inside and carefully shut the door behind us.  
  
"Have a seat." I said pulling out a chair and pushing him down into it, not really giving him an option. I placed my hands on his shoulders "I'm really sorry about yelling and honking at you this morning. I wasn't in the best of moods and I'm really really sorry." I said running my hands up and down his muscled chest. I felt him stiffen and then relax under my touch. I gave him an apologetic smile. "Could you ever forgive me?" I took one look in those sapphire eyes and saw that I was close to accomplishing my goal. "Please?" I asked lifting a hand and running it down the side of his face.  
  
Darien's lips curved into a smile. "I forgive you," he said.  
  
"Great." I said pulling away. 'That was way to easy.' I thought with satisfaction.  
  
~Darien's P.O.V.~  
  
I walked out of Serena's dressing room shaking my head in disbelief. 'The girl actually tried to seduce me into forgiving her!!! I didn't let her know that I was onto her game so I played along and said I forgave her and she actually bought it. Of course I was mad at her antics from earlier this morning but now I'm furious at her for trying to seduce me into forgiving her.'  
  
'Speaking of forgiveness...why did she want mine anyway? If I were her I wouldn't care who was mad at me even if they were going to be my new partner. Anyway I'm going to teach that beautiful-whoa hold on there!! Did I just call her beautiful?!' I tilt my head slightly as I head back to the working area contemplating this idea over. 'Well I guess there is no use trying to deny it; anyone with eyes could see that she is gorgeous still...'  
  
'I'm going to teach that beau--err--I mean obnoxious blond a lesson to never mess with me!' I thought with a fiendish glint in my eyes as I headed toward the studio area. 'And I know just how to do it!'  
  
AN: He he. Cliffhanger. So what does Darien have in store for Serena? Stay tuned for chapter 3 and please review! 


	3. And the pranks begin

AN: Here it is, the newest chapter of FCBC! Hope you like it!  
  
Fate Can Be Cruel  
  
Chapter 3: And the pranks begin...  
  
"You need more blush darling, you look quite faint," a graying haired woman says to me as she gives me last minute touch ups before I go on the air. I roll my eyes. The reason I look so "faint" is because she put about a pound of the white powder on my face.  
  
"Estelle..." I whine. I'm already quite nervous and now I have to deal with looking like a ghost?!  
  
"I was just messing with you honey," Estelle says smiling. "You know I'd never put that much makeup on your face. Heaven knows you don't need it." Estelle says taking a cloth and wiping half of the makeup off. Adding only a dab of blush now, Estelle says "All done."  
  
I look into the mirror and manage a half hearted smile. "Another excellent job Estelle."  
  
"There's no need to be nervous darling. You and...what's his name...Darien will get along just great and everything will be alright."  
  
I swear that woman knows me better than my own mother. She automatically knows how I'm feeling and why I'm feeling it every time. I stand up and hug Estelle.  
  
Speaking of my mother...I have to tell her about Jordan and I breaking up. She was kind of expecting to hear wedding bells soon. I know I'll get another lecture, I can just hear my mother now, "Serena your twenty-two years old, why by the time I was your age I had already married and had you. I want grandchildren and from the looks of things I won't ever have any!"  
  
Serena sighed and made her way to the filming area. 'She'll just have to get over it...eventually. It's not like it's my fault that I can't seem to find the right guy.'  
  
"Come on everybody! Were on in 1 minute!" Chad, the producer of the morning show yells.  
  
My eyes flicker over Chad. I've never noticed it before but he's kind of cute. The way his deep chocolate hair covers his chocolate eyes and his well chiseled features. 'He kind of reminds me of a rock star.' I think absent-mindedly. I know Jordan and I only broke up this morning but why shouldn't I start looking again this soon, after all he's the one who broke up with me.  
  
Chad catches my gaze on him and smiles. 'Oh what should I do! Should I turn away or what?!' I think frantically. 'Wait! Why am I so nervous? I have nothing to nervous about. I should just smile back.' I think so I smile back. 'At least he's noticed me.' I think.  
  
I flip of my golden tresses, and they fall back in place but seem to hold more volumn. I turn only to see Darien smiling as if he has learned some big secret. I roll my baby blues 'So what if he knows I like Chad. Big deal.'  
  
I walk over to my place and take out my seat, and sit down, just as Chad says "And were on."  
  
'This chair feels funny.' I think as I position myself differently, crossing my legs and leaning back to lessen the discomfort.  
  
"Good morning Phoneix, Arizona. I am Serena Tskunio and this is my new partner Darien Shields." I say jesturing to Darien, who flashes a smile.  
  
"Today, there was," *CRACK* "Aghh!!!" I cry as the bottom of my chair falls through and I'm folded in half with my legs up in the air, giving my audience a pretty good view. Good for them, horribly embarassing for me. 'Dang! I knew I should have opted for the hip-huggers instead of this stupid skirt!' I silently fume.  
  
"Cut to a comercial break!" Chad yells.  
  
The rest of the crew hurries over to me and pulls me out while one stands back and whistles. "Hey Serena nice-"  
  
"Knock it off Ken!" I yell, interupting his comment, my face turning to crimson. With the help of Chad and Greg, I finally manage to get up and standing. "What is wrong with my chair?!" I cry, backing away from it.  
  
"Looks like somebody tampered with it." Darien said stating the obvious.  
  
"I know that." I explain patiently. "But why would someone do such a thing to me."  
  
"Maybe it's just a defective chair." Greg suggests.  
  
"It could be but I have a feeling that someone did this to me purposely, but right now that doesn't matter. What matters is how am I supposed to show my face on national television?" I cry as I sit on the desk.  
  
"Awww...come on Serena, things like this happen all the time. Just make a joke of it and everything will be alright." Chad says putting his arm around me, for comfort.  
  
*sniffle* "I suppose..." I say trailing off, to have Chad comfort me some more.  
  
"Trust me Sere, it'll work." Chad says with a reassuring squeeze.  
  
"I trust you." I say, flashing him one of my dazzling smiles. "Maybe we could talk later and you could give me some pointers on how to deal with these kinds of situations." I innocently suggest, batting my lashes once for effect.  
  
"Sure." Chad replies, returning my smile.  
  
~~~~~~~Darien~~~~~~~  
  
I watched with glee as Serena fell through her chair. I guess being forced to take shop had it's payoffs after all. The shocked look on her face was priceless but I did not expect to see her play her innocent act to get with Chad afterwards. That was just icing on the cake.  
  
'That girl has no dignity does she? Throwing herself at Chad in front of everyone, although I may have been the only one who caught onto her act. I know for sure that he didn't catch on because he 'made a date with her' which I highly doubt that he knew he made. Lucky guy.'  
  
'Wait! Did I just say lucky guy?! I bang my head against the table in my dressing room. 'I meant poor sap. Yeah that's what I meant!'  
  
'Anyway...Serena did help me out with my plan. I had a few more "small" pranks planned out already for her but for the grand finale I had no idea what to do; now I do.  
  
All I have to say is "You don't mess with Darien Shields!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~ AN: I promise to try to have more Darien and Serena interaction in the next chapter and for the person who said I wasn't going to finish Be Mine, I am, I got loaded down with a lot of things to do and I just got a bit of writers block before but now the chapter is over half finished so you should see it soon. One more thing, Review!  
  
Ja! 


	4. Identity Revealed

Fate Can Be Cruel  
  
AN: Here is the next chapter at last.  
  
Last time:  
  
"All I have to say is you don't mess with Darien Shields."  
  
~~~~~~~~Darien~~~~~~~~  
  
I looked both ways to make sure no one saw what I had just done. Seeing that the coast was clear I continued on to my car. I slipped behind the wheel of my black porche and let out a sigh of both relief and satisfaction. In case your wondering what I had just done, I'll tell you.  
  
I followed Serena home and parked my car in a shady area. I then waited for her to go inside and after about ten minutes, when I was sure that she wasn't coming back out anytime soon I crept up her driveway and opened the hood of her blood red mustang. I looked at the wires for a moment before finding the one I wanted. I pulled the wire out of its socket and crossed a few other wires to make sure that Serena wouldn't be able to use her car.  
  
Why am I so resolute on her not being able to use her car, you ask? Well, you see Serena at the moment is inside getting ready for her "date" with Chad and without her car she won't be able to meet him. I tap my fingers on the steering wheel as I think of what I have just done. Now that I think of it what I just have done is horrible but then again how she tried to seduce me was even worse. She deserves it. Without a second thought I drive off.  
  
~~~Serena~~~  
  
"No!!!" I cry banging my head against the steering wheel. "This...can't...be...happening!" I exclaim between each bang. I stop in mid bang. "Big pink marks on your head, not attractive Serena." I tell myself, now rubbing my sore forehead. "But if I'm not at that cafe in twenty minutes it won't matter how I look because Chad won't see me and he'll think I stood him up!" I wail.  
  
I open the door and step outside. I open up the hood of my mustang and stare blankly at the engine and wires beneath it. I lean down to pick up a wire and then set it back down. 'Who am I kidding? I can't fix this. ' I groan.  
  
I shut the hood with a snap and sit on the hood. 'I just don't understand. My car was working perfectly before and now it won't even start.' I flop back on the hood with groan.  
  
"Hey if I buy that car do I get you with it?" A deep male voice asks hopefully.  
  
"Ken!" I exclaim happily bolting upright on the car. 'Maybe he'll give me a ride.' I think.  
  
"The one and only." he remarks as I jump off the car and walk over to him.  
  
"Ken can you give me a ride?" I ask smiling.  
  
"I'd love to Serena but I've got to be somewhere soon. I probably shouldn't even have stopped but I couldn't resist."  
  
I feel my smile slipping. I lean through the window and run my fingers along his strong jaw line. "Pretty please?" I ask. "It's not that far from here and my car won't start." I lean in even farther so that is faces are only centimeters away.  
  
"O-Ok." he stutters.  
  
I squeal with delight as I race around to the other side, open the door and slip in. "Antwan's Cafe at 210 Rose Street." I say as Ken guns the engine. Not another word was spoken until Ken pulled up to the cafe. I climb out of the vehicle. "Thanks for the ride." I say as I shut the door.  
  
"No problem...and Serena?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You...you look great." Ken says nervously. I flash him a sweet smile.  
  
"Thanks." I say before heading into the cafe.  
  
~~Later in the cafe~~  
  
"No way! I can't believe that happened!" I exclaim smiling.  
  
Chad gave a me a sheepish grin. "Neither could I."  
  
I just shake my head before taking a sip of my coffee. A comfortable silence fell over us. 'It's so easy to talk to him.' I think. Suddenly a question pops into my mind. 'Why haven't I thought of this before?!' I wonder.  
  
"Chad, the studio has security camera's everywhere, right?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"And would it be possible to have access to the tapes?"  
  
"Yes...they're in the storage room, arranged by date. What are you getting at Serena?"  
  
"I just want to check on any activity around my chair today."  
  
"You still think someone rigged it?"  
  
"At first I felt myself beginning to believe it was a faulty chair but now after what's happened..." I trailed off.  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"I went home and came out and my car wouldn't start, when just hour before it worked perfectly. I had to get a ride from Ken to get here."  
  
"There could be a number of reasons why your car wouldn't start."  
  
"I know but...." I trailed off, deep in thought as Chad threw a couple of bills on the table. 'Maybe all of this is bad luck and I'm throwing it all out of proportion.' I think.  
  
Chad stood up. "Come on. I'll give you a ride home." I followed Chad to his car and slid in. He started the engine and we were off.  
  
"So how do you like your new partner?" Chad asked.  
  
"He's...alright. We got off to a rocky start at first but now everything is ok." I replied.  
  
Chad nodded. "So if you don't mind me asking, what do you mean by a rocky start?"  
  
Serena groaned at the memory. "I was having a really bad day. You see Jordan had had the nerve to break up with me over the phone, and I was running late to work. I got stuck behind this blood red Porsche that wouldn't move, so I honked my horn and yelled at the driver..."  
  
"Let me guess," Chad said interrupting me, "that driver was Darien." I nodded. Chad pulled his car up my drive way.  
  
I looked up the drive way at my car. "Would you mind checking out my car to find out what's wrong with it? I don't think I could get a mechanic to check out my car this late and with out it I can't get to work."  
  
Chad got out of the car and opened the hood to my mustang. "Let's see..." He mumbled as he leaned closer to the inside of the vehicle. He cocked his head and gave me an odd look.  
  
"What's wrong?" I asked.  
  
"Maybe your right." he said.  
  
"Right about what?"  
  
"That someone keeps pulling these pranks on you. There are a few crossed wires in here but what makes me believe it, is that the wires connected to your engine are all completely undone. That kind of thing can't happen on its own, someone had to do it."  
  
"I knew it!" I exclaimed. "And I'm going to find out who the culprit is and give them a dose of their own medicine!"  
  
~THE NEXT DAY~  
  
I pulled out a tape marked with yesterdays date and shoved it into the VCR. "Boring...boring...even more boring." I mumble as I fast forward the tape. I slow the tape down as it shows a view of my chair. A dark figure looks around cautiously before proceeding to my chair. I watch as the dark figure takes apart my chair and removes the main support board for my chair.  
  
I glare angrily at the televisions screen. "Come on now turn so I can see your face." I growl. At that moment the person turned around and I sucked in my breath as the face came into clear view. "Darien..."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Hoped you enjoyed it. Please review. JA! 


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